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Accidents Raise More Questions About Theme Park Rides

IT was the story of last summer for the more than 300 million annual visitors to America's amusement and theme parks. With report after report about accidents involving rides — one that injured more than a dozen people at the California Screamin' roller coaster at Disney's California Adventure in July, another that left a family of five injured at a flume ride at the Steel Pier in Atlantic City in June — visitors began questioning whether their safety was being taken for granted.

Now, some lawmakers are asking the same thing.

In recent months, a number of state and federal legislators as well as consumer advocates have started to look into whether new safety regulations — or strengthening of existing ones — are needed. "It's one of the few industries in the United States that has an exemption from the consumer-product safety laws. It doesn't deserve that," said David Moulton, an aide to Representative Ed Markey, the Democrat of Massachusetts who has increased his call for federal oversight. In 1999, Mr. Markey first proposed such regulation in a national amusement park safety bill after the deaths of four people on roller coasters.

As the industry gears up for what could be another busy summer, the issue doesn't appear to be going away. Already, there have been a number of serious events this year: in February, a 70-year-old man was injured boarding Peter Pan's Flight at Disney World's Magic Kingdom. Later in the month, a 13-year-old boy was injured when he fell from a roller coaster at the Cypress Gardens park, also in Central Florida.

But while officials and consumer advocates are quick to note such events as they make their legislative case, the industry says its safety record speaks for itself. Beth Robertson, a spokeswoman for the International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions, says there have been just two rider deaths a year on average over the last two decades — meaning there is a one in 790 million chance of being fatally injured, based on ridership figures.

Others, including Kathy Fackler, a computer programmer from La Jolla, Calif., whose son's foot was crushed at a Disneyland ride in 1998 — say the association doesn't have a detailed system for reporting accidents.

Still, when an event does occur, it's often because the rider has taken a risk by, say, not remaining seated or because the rider has a pre-existing medical condition. Last June, for example, a 4-year-old child died on Mission: Space at Walt Disney World's Epcot Center. For all the attention that was focused on the attraction, which simulates the G-forces involved in space travel, it was determined that an undiagnosed heart condition had caused the child's death.

But such cases, critics say, don't change the real problem: an industry that's shielded by a regulatory system that imposes no national standards. While traveling carnivals are overseen by the federal Consumer Product Safety Commission, amusement (or "fixed site") parks are exempt from such oversight under a 1981 act that was lobbied for by the industry. Mr. Markey's office calls it the "roller coaster loophole."

On the state level, regulation varies widely. Some states — notably California and Massachusetts — have strict rules requiring that every ride at every amusement park and carnival be inspected regularly. A few states have virtually no regulations. And others have found a middle ground. In Florida, for example, carnival rides are subject to state inspection, but rides at the state's largest theme parks are self-inspected.

To advocates like Ms. Fackler, such a patchwork system is an accident waiting to happen. She argues that without federal oversight, there's no real accountability or perspective. Smaller states are often not able to afford a "robust investigation or inspection program," Ms. Fackler said, and bigger states have no central database to alert regulators to potentially troublesome rides elsewhere in the country.

"Imagine if we required every state to come up with its own airplane crash team. That's what we have here," said Ms. Fackler, who heads the nonprofit group Saferparks.

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But the industry argues that amusement park rides are highly customized — what you see at Disney, you won't see at Universal. Some industry officials like Dave Collins, a ride inspector based in California, say such attractions are in a different category from carnival rides and may be beyond the grasp of a federal overseer.

Donn Walker, a Disney spokesman, put it this way: "We are not convinced that another layer of regulation from Washington is the best answer. We have not seen anything proposed that would improve the safety of our parks."

But if federal legislation has not gone beyond the discussion stage (Mr. Markey's bill hasn't made it to the House floor), several states are addressing the issue. In the last year, Tennessee has passed legislation, Arizona is looking into regulations, and Massachusetts has bolstered existing standards.

The states' approaches vary widely. In Massachusetts, regulations cover everything from requiring that maintenance and repair records be kept for each ride to requiring that criminal background checks be performed on park and carnival employees. But in Tennessee, new legislation doesn't even call for state inspections. Instead, it requires ride operators to show proof of inspection, which is often done by their insurance companies, and to carry at least $1 million in liability insurance.

While some critics might contend that Tennessee's regulations aren't strict enough, Richard Montgomery, a Republican state representative, said it's a solid start. "We don't want to overreact," said Mr. Montgomery, who pressed for the law after the 2004 death of a woman on a ride at a park in his district.

In Florida, State Senator Steve Geller, a Democrat from Hallandale who was behind the 1988 safety rules that are still in effect, said it comes down to partisan politics. He said he doesn't believe he can make the case for more oversight with a Republican-led state house and senate that he sees as antiregulatory. It was difficult enough to pass the original legislation, Mr. Geller said, because Republicans insisted the industry could regulate itself, especially if the consequences of failing to do so meant losing business.

"Their attitude is if enough people get killed," Mr. Geller said, "people will stop going on rides."

But Florida State Representative Paige Kreegel, Republican of Punta Gorda, Fla., says that he's open to revisiting the issue. "If kids are dying on rides, we need to take a look at that," he said.

One state is taking a different approach. In South Carolina, which performs annual ride inspections, the focus is on park patrons. The Rider Safety Act, which went into effect on Jan. 1, requires that riders follow posted safety rules or face a misdemeanor charge. The goal, said State Representative Alan D. Clemmons, Republican of Myrtle Beach and a sponsor of the measure, is to not only limit frivolous lawsuits, but also to send the message that thrill rides are thrilling for a reason — and patrons can't ignore the risks. "When one decides to ride a roller coaster," Mr. Clemmons said, "there's inherently more risk to that than walking on the beach."